Elijah Mikaelson & The Dragon's Legacy

Chapter 15

Over the weeks that followed, Elijah would teach her about life as a vampire. He explained that turning had the effect of magnifying those qualities one possessed as a human. Elijah wondered if that was why she lay asleep for over a week at her father's death yet it was overnight for her mother's death. He tested out whether he could compel her but she was still immune to that as well. He agreed with her that they should move because the villagers and farmers they dealt with would eventually begin to notice that Angelica was not aging. It was decided that he and Niklaus would get to work finding them a new home.

Elijah showed Angelica how to hunt, she needed to learn in order to survive but he also needed to see whether she was a ripper. The carnage she left behind upon turning gave him pause since she had quite literally ripped the men apart. The bastards deserved it but he needed to see if she had control over her blood lust. As they hunted, he was pleasantly surprised at how much control she actually had. She learned quickly as she did with all things and was able to hunt, drink, and compel her victims to forget. "It was better to compel than to kill," he would tell her, "it attracted less attention that way." She had empathy towards her victims and that gave her the control she needed. She moved effortlessly, quietly, it was as if she had always been a vampire she had mastered it so well.

Elijah was the perfect, supportive husband as Angelica adjusted to being a vampire, to life without her father. She was somber and quiet at times, even withdrawn, and Elijah hoped she would return to her old self over time. She eventually shared with him the details of the attack, of turning, of her first kills. She told him that Rebekah had worked with her to teach her to defend herself, and she used what she had been taught to prevent them from violating her.  But she regretted being too weak to save her father.  Talking about it seemed to help her but she struggled with the thought of how violence seemed to be her destiny.

She found sleeping difficult and Elijah would find her roaming around the house at night. She admitted to him that when she closed her eyes she would relive those events over and over again. She shared with him that she felt as if something was coming for her, something evil, and she felt powerless to defend against it. Elijah did his best to comfort his wife, but felt that what she really needed was time and a change of scenery to truly put it all behind her.

When Angelica had asked them to continue her fight training, Elijah wondered if this would help her overcome the past violence done to her, violence that made her believe it was her destiny to be victimized and helpless to fight against it. It would give her a sense of control. But Elijah worried that the psychological scars from the attacks she suffered were so deep that as a vampire, this fear of being victimized had been magnified ten-fold. There was no harm in her learning to fight if it meant helping her to overcome those feelings. Rebekah again volunteered to train Angelica to fight and to defend herself. Elijah and Niklaus would watch their sessions at times and give suggestions on technique, but Rebekah was squarely in charge of the training.

The more she learned about fighting, the more obsessed about it she became. She needed to learn more techniques, more variations, and pressed them to teach her everything they knew. She had mastered Rebekah's teachings and had become quite good. The only way Rebekah would beat her was through brute strength due to their 600 year difference.

Angelica then convinced Niklaus to teach her his fighting style and he agreed, believing it would help her with her fears. He was a more brutal teacher than Rebekah and did not hesitate to inflict pain upon her when he gained the advantage or she left herself vulnerable. Elijah intervened on several occasions, telling Niklaus he was going too far but Angelica told Elijah it was better for her to learn now than to die later. There was no winning the argument with Angelica as she had made up her mind on the matter, but Elijah could not bear to stand by and watch his beloved be battered and bruised by his brother, even if it was with her consent. He would make himself scarce but would sneak back at times to watch them spar, and he was quite proud of Angelica when she would occasionally get the upper hand with Niklaus.  She was a master at thinking on her feet and anticipating his moves.

When she had learned all that Niklaus could teach her, she turned her efforts toward Elijah. He was a master at sword and shield, and fought differently than Rebekah and Niklaus. She spent weeks working on him to teach her what he knew but he refused. Elijah's fighting style was the same as Mikael's style and she needed to learn how her Viking father-in-law battled as that was the only way for her to survive an attack from Mikael. Elijah thought he had told her too much about Mikael as she was obsessed that Mikael was the evil she envisioned would come for her. Elijah told her firmly that should she ever find herself in Mikael's presence that she should run away from him, not fight him. He made her promise him that she would run, hide and do everything to get away from him. She promised him but still wanted him to teach her. Elijah placated her by agreeing to teach her but held off with any lessons until they were settled into their new home.

Niklaus did find them a new home, a country estate outside of any Dukedom where they would live relatively undisturbed. Packing up the estate kept them all busy, especially Angelica, who knew every nook and cranny of the estate and ensured nothing of value, either real or sentimental, was left behind. A month later they were moved into their new home, leaving an estate manager behind to take care of the Dukedom until the new royals arrived. Rebekah and Angelica were a dynamic force, overseeing the unpacking and decorating of the new home. It was not long before they were done: Portraits were hung, books were shelved, Kol and Finn were stored in the basement, and the Mikaelsons were settled into their new home. She had even taken the decorative M with her that graced the front entrance of the old estate. Niklaus had liked the design of the M and although it stood for Medici, Angelica declared that it now stood for Mikaelson.

The change of scenery did indeed improve Angelica's mood and she found herself putting Montecito behind her and looked forward to this new adventure. Elijah had already retired for the evening and when she came to join him in their room, he was already asleep lying on his back. She walked over to his side of the bed and brushed her hand across his cheek. He opened his eyes and smiled at her, she smiled back at him as the candlelight reflected against her bright green eyes. He was about to move and she put out her hand to stop him. She undid the buttons of her dress and let it drop to the floor. The undergarment soon followed suit. She lifted the covers and slid into bed next to Elijah. She moved on top of him and kissed him, gently at first. Elijah let her be in control, she needed to be in control, he loved that she was in control. The two embarked upon a beautifully intimate night and Angelica for the first time, as a vampire, found what pleasures awaited her in her new form. Little sleep was to be had that evening, but for Angelica there was not a nightmare in sight. As morning broke and the two nestled together, Angelica remarked that he had been holding back on her. He smiled shyly and held her close, whispering to her that he had to or else he would have hurt her, and he would never, ever hurt her. Angelica smiled and the two fell asleep entwined together as the sun shone in on them through their bedroom window.